The perfect vegan Pumpkin Mac and cheese! This is perfect for thanksgiving, holiday parties or year-round dinners. It’s packed with nutrients, high in protein, and oh so comforting.
Vegan Pumpkin Mac and Cheese
This oven-baked, vegan pumpkin Mac and cheese is super easy to make and so delicious. It will be your new thanksgiving favorite! I covered all the basics for a delicious Mac and cheese; the cheesiness, the sauciness, heartiness, PLUS extra nutrients. It’s also super duper easy to make!
4 Simple Steps:
BLEND: Get your sauce ready by blending all the sauce ingredients besides the cheddar cheese.
POUR: Add uncooked pasta to baking dish then pour in your freshly blended sauce. Add about ½ cup of vegan shredded cheese, use a spoon to mix in well and make sure all pasta shells are covered.
BAKE: Cover baking dish in aluminums foil and bake at 425 F (218 C) for 35 minutes.
BREADCRUMB: Toast 4-5 slices of bread until crispy on both sides. Add to a food processor and blend with olive oil, salt, and herbs. Spread on top of the Mac and cheese with the rest of the shredded cheeses and bake for an extra 10 minutes.
The ingredients are also super simple. Take a look:
Tips and Substitutes:
Vegan Cheese
- A good vegan cheese is definitely hard to find, but don’t worry — I did the hard part for you! I’m pretty sure I’ve tried every single plant-based cheese on the market now and here are my top favorites:
- Follow your heart
- Chao by Field Roast
- So Delicious and Violife
- Adding vegan cheese is not absolutely necessary for this recipe and you can substitute with a bit extra nutritional yeast and full fat coconut milk. If you are not adding cheese, add 2 extra tablespoons of nooch, 1 tbsp lemon juice or apple cider vinegar and ⅓ cup full fat coconut milk.
Cashews/Nut-free Version
- I like to add soaked cashews because they add a nice healthy fat, extra protein, as well as a delicious flavor that is overall pretty neutral with a hint of sweetness. It makes the sauce extra creamy and smooth.
- However, you can feel free to substitute with another fat such as full fat coconut milk, vegan butter or even olive oil PLUS a creamy vegetables like potato or cauliflower.
½ cup cooked cauliflower or potato + 2 tbsp olive oil
OR
½ cup cooked cauliflower or potato + 2 tbsp vegan butter
Substitutes for your Vegan Pumpkin Mac and Cheese
If using vegan butter, I highly recommend using Earth Balance for vegan butter. IT WAS INSANELY GOOD! HIGHLY RECOMMEND.
Other substitute options and tips:
- Fresh garlic/onion = Garlic or onion powder
- Pumpkin = Sweet potato or yam
- This mac and cheese stays good about 3-4 days in the refrigerator. When reheating make sure to add 1-2 tablespoons of oat or almond milk per bowl to get it creamy again
Other Delicious Vegan Recipes:
Stove-top Vegan Mac and Cheese
10 Vegan Thanksgiving Recipes (Entree, sides and desserts!)
Roasted Butternut Squash Pasta
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Vegan Pumpkin Mac and Cheese
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Diet: Vegan
Description
The perfect vegan Pumpkin Mac and cheese! This is perfect for thanksgiving, holiday parties or year-round dinners. It’s packed with nutrients, high in protein, and oh so comforting.
Ingredients
- 12 oz pasta
- 1 cup vegan cheddar cheese
Sauce:
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- ½ cup vegan cream cheese
- ½ cup cashews, soaked
- ½ cup nutritional yeast
- 3 ½ cups of vegetable broth
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp turmeric (optional for color)
Bread crumbs:
- 6 slices of your choice of bread
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tbsp herbs of choice
- 1 tbsp olive oil or melted vegan butter
Instructions
1. Soak cashews overnight or in boiling hot water for 20-30 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 425 F (218 C)
3. To a blender, add pumpkin puree, cream cheese, cashews, nutritional yeast, vegetables broth and garlic. Blend until a smooth puree forms.
4. Add pasta to baking tray. Pour mixture over pasta. Add vegan cheddar cheese shreds, and mix in. Make sure all the pasta is submerged in the sauce.
5. Bake for 35 minutes. Bake your slices of bread for about 15 minutes or until crispy.
6. Take out your toast and add it to a food processor. Process for 1 minute. Add salt and rosemary and process for 30 seconds. Finally, add olive oil and process for another 30 seconds.
7. Take macaroni out of the oven after 35 minutes and spread the bread crumbs on top and more vegan cheese if you’d like.
8. Bake for another 7-10 minutes. Broil for the last minute to get the breadcrumbs extra crispy.
9. Let cool off for 10 minutes and serve.
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 45
- Category: Thanksgiving
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Absolutely amazing !!! New classic staple for sure !